Spider-Verse: A Universe of Lovers
by Dipper3
Summary: Miles Morales finds himself transported to a NY apartment in an alternate dimension after failing to get in contact with Gwen Stacy through a portal. He meets its lone inhabitant, a kid the same as him who's a big fan and romantic admirer of his. Despite harshly rejecting his romantic pursuits at first, he begins to regret doing so and eventually accepts his sexuality.
1. A Universe of Lovers

**Chapter 1: A Universe of Lovers**

 **Featured character(s): Miles Morales/Spider-Man, Edward, Gwen Stacy/Spider-Gwen (mentioned)**

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 **A/N:** **Update (January 27, 2019) -** I have updated this chapter to add an additional sentence or two. Nothing of much importance. I might update more of this chapter and the other ones imminently.

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"What the...how the hell did I end up here?" The costumed teen asked to particularly no one. After his many fruitless attempts at reaching out to Gwen Stacy, he had succeeded...while simultaneously failing at the same time. This place did not give off her essence, which had attracted him. Clearly this was someone else's residence. With a whispered sigh Spider-Man began inspecting the place.

He seemed to have teleported himself to a New York apartment with white walls adorned with picture frames and brown wooden flooring that sustained used furniture. Nothing special, though the unnerving silence attracted fear towards him. Where were the inhabitants? His spider senses assured him of no eminent danger, although not so much on anyone's presence. Still, he rummaged through the white bulky refrigerator in the kitchen for a snack. Traveling universes gave him an appetite.

An apple from an apple bag stashed in one of the kitchen cupboards caught his eye, and he grasped at it with care, so as to not make noise in case anyone was within the apartment's vicinity. Then, he removed his mask, and for a moment reverted back to being Miles Morales.

As he indulged in the saccharine extract of the apple, Miles Morales happened to notice a creak, creak, creak in the floorboards, and so Miles Morales turned around to face a kid the same age as him, staring dumbfounded at the Afro-Latino teenager.

Or at Spider-Man. But what matter would it be? Spider-Man got caught. Miles Morales got caught. And they were both in big trouble.

The awkward silence that the teenagers interchanged irked Miles. The other boy stared at him with admiration, and his heart thundered. So he cracked the tension. "Hey, these apples are good. Where you get them from?"

That was the best he could do at interrupting the silence.

Well, the other teenager, who Miles noticed had short hair that curled at the top, thin black spectacles, and naturally full lips, still kept his confounded expression. Finally, he spoke, albeit with an awkward tone. "Oh. My. God. Are you...really...Miles Morales?"

"How you know me already? I don't even know you at all!"

"Wha-how? How are you in here of all places? Hi, I'm Edward! I'm, like, a fan of yours!" He lend his hand to Miles, who robotically shook his hand.

"Hold up," disturbed Miles as he rhythmically rubbed the right temple of his head, "you mean to tell me that I have fans? Or Peter Parker's Spider-Man has fans?"

"No, your version of Spider-Man! They even made an animated film starring you." The lightly-skinned teenager without a name searched something up on his Samsung and shoved it in Miles' face. It was a Wikipedia page for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.

"Damn," said Miles between reading excerpts of the page, clearly astonished, "I have fans. Just like Peter Parker." The thought of resuming the late Peter Parker's legacy respectfully made him feel good. He had managed to follow in Peter's footsteps, even garnering a fanbase as massive as the OG Spider-Man's. And he was face-to-face with a fan. Who was actually excited to meet him, see him, be with him...and who wasn't...

...well, so...

...so good looking...

...no, no he wasn't, just okay looking, but...

...he did have some defining muscles, and...

...and he got lost in his mind.

What had he been thinking about before?

"Are you okay?" said Edward quizzically, snapping Miles back into reality.

"Yeah, man, I just...spaced out, I guess," dragged out Miles. "Didn't think anyone would ever look up to me. Thought Peter would always overshadow me. But it's nice to know that I have my own movie and following. Especially with fans like you who are, what's the word, devoted to me?"

The teenager slipped him a shy smile and turned his attention to the floor, as if he was interacting with it from now on. "I'm not your biggest fan, you know? I only became a fan after hearing news of the Spider-Verse film and saw you."

"You still a fan," accented Miles, "and I appreciate you for that".

Another hidden smile. Then more white noise. No talking.

Nothing.

"Wanna go to my room?" Stuttered the teenager. "Sorry if that sounded weird, but you seem tired. We could hang out and chill while you rest."

"Sure thing," perked up Miles. Frankly, teleporting _was_ something he was not accustomed to, and it had worn him out fatly. He followed the teenager into his room, staring at him from behind. His beating heart was trying to tell him something from within his subconscious, but he tried to push that thought aside. Whatever he felt might have just been gratitude for his fan. He wasn't attracted to guys, no, of course not, he leaned straight. He even liked Gwen Stacy, so that didn't mean he was...well...

When they arrived, Miles looked around the room and considered its limited-spaced atmosphere. Apart from a twin-sized bed with periwinkle blue bed sheets and a cabinet acting as a bookshelf to a small stack of paperbacks, the room was baring furniture.

Worse still, there were only two posters plastered throughout the entire room, giving it an impersonal air about it. As Edward laid in his bed, concentrating on the ceiling, Miles took the opportunity to inspect the closet, only to find a bunch of suspending clothes and multiple pair of Nike shoes paired up side by side on the mahogany wooden closet floor.

It didn't hold his interest, so he headed towards the bed and laid next to the teenager without a name, paralleling the kid's vision towards the ceiling.

That's when he saw the poster for Spider-Verse. It featured him in his trademarked black-and-red Spider-Man costume, green hoodie worn on top, performing a backflip as a misty New York City loomed in the background.

He was about to inquire Edward on the poster, but was cut short by Edward himself. He had a question for him as well, it seemed. "I'm hungry. You want anything to eat?"

"Nah man, already devoured an apple from your fridge-um, I mean,-"

"What? How long were you here?"

"Um, long enough to eat an entire apple?"

"You better haven't stalked me before I found you out. I had just finished showering when you appeared-"

"Oh, no, no, no!" Miles' words sped out at almost 100 MPH (Meters Per Hour), "IwasjusteatinganapplewhenyoucaughtmeredhandedandI'dneverthinkofdoingathinglikethat-" His cheeks flickered to a cherry cola shade.

"Dang, chill, Miles!" brightened up Edward, "I was just playing around. Don't take it to heart."

"Right, right," mustered Miles, embarrassed that his rambling had been to no avail.

"Unless you really were peepin-"

"So..you have a poster of me?" intercepted Miles, not wanting to dwell further on the subject, "Why's it on the ceiling?"

The teenager never wandered his stare off the ceiling, still studying it. "I had thought it would be the perfect place to display it. That way I get a better view of you because I-well, I admire you."

"Yeah," said Miles, hypnotized by his poster counterpart, "I'm aware of that."

Too hypnotized, in fact, that he did not attended to his host, who was eyeing him in...a particular way.

After fixing himself into the bedroom, his new friend popped him a question. "So in the Spider-Verse film, you spoke both English and Spanish. Am I correct?"

"Yeah?" enunciated Miles, not catching on to his fan's intentions.

"I too am bilingual," said Edward candidly, "Ain't that something?"

"Cool, cool", and so a conversation was sprung between the two boys. Following that, it became commonplace for Miles to travel to Edward's dimension, pop in to chit-chat, and then leave his dimension at an appropriate time. This was accomplished without neither of their families' knowledge and presence.

Their dialogue was simple but significant; they admitted their joint love of pizza, anxieties about meeting new people in a foreign environment (school, basically), and their daily routine. And said dialogues transitioned smoothly, without any awkward intermissions.

Usually they did. But that undid itself one day.

"Yeah, it was awkward, but we're friends, so it's all good." Miles finished this with a curving smile that inspired joy.

"Oh yeah! I remember that," exclaimed Ed.

"Hollywood can't tell it like how it is, though, can it?"

"Most of the time...basically."

"You heard the truth here, am I right?" He then threw himself up in laughter, while Edward had instructed himself of the time. Now was perfect.

As nonchalantly as could be, Ed slipped his hand into Miles' thigh, rubbing it side to side, the heat rising from the motion.

The heat that had made Ed warm every time Miles invaded his every thought.

But this fantasy was diminished by Miles' reaction.

Miles frowned but remain submissive. How could his new friend open up to him like this when he, well, was still undeterred about his true sexuality? Finally, though, he hissed at his romantic admirer with hostility.

"The fuck are you doing? You into that gay shit, aren't you?"

"N-no, I-I thought you had l-lint or something-"

"Shut the fuck up, you fag! I don't mess with that gay shit!"

"But I'm not, I'm really-no, come back, don't leave me in tears!"

He tried reaching for him. Another snarky reply came back in retaliation.

"Don't touch me... _maricón_."

The word lived on even as Miles entered the portal and left. Abandoned, Edward felt his throat raspy and dry; his eyes delicate and almost erupting from tears; and his body rusty and disjointed from numbness.

He couldn't even think of his next actions. Actually, he couldn't think of much at the moment. The shock protruding from the slur had weighed on him pretty hard, and he had never felt this fragile before. Even the sweat of tears that marred his face were diluted.

A little while later, however, he constricted himself back up and resumed using his laptop. He still stayed at the edge of the bed for a half-hour before settling on a shower. It would do good to him.

For one, it would cleanse him of shame.

And of his love for Miles Gonzalo Morales.


	2. The Dimensions of Self-Acceptance

**Chapter 2: The Dimensions of Self-Acceptance**

 **Featured character(s): Edward (mentioned), Gwen Stacy/Spider-Gwen, and Ganke Lee**

Miles felt betrayed by his own emotions. Although he had been comfortable with his heterosexuality, even outright flaunting it to his ex-friend Edward in a blunt display of homophobia, now he began doubting it. His eyes sneaked peaks at a male model's defined six packs in a Calvin Klein advertisement and no longer seemed drawn by the voluptuous and curvaceous figures in yet another advertising tactic, this time in front of a Victoria's Secret. Girls no longer seemed interesting or sexy, but instead replaced with just plain or cute. Especially concerning was his dying crush for Gwen, who he had managed to reconnect with .

When Miles mentioned his loss of attraction towards women to Gwen through his portal one day on the eve of a peach-scarlet horizon, she remarked very snidely, but obviously joking:

"Seems to me like someone spends too much of their free-time swinging through New York City in that Spider-Man costume, and not enough time with actual people. Or perhaps you might be-"

"Don't say it. I know what you're gonna say."

"I do too, and I'm not gonna say it. It's something else, I promise."

"Spill it then."

"Perhaps you might be-" Something about her smile seemed off. "You might be tir-GAY!"

"I KNEW YOU WERE GONNA SAY IT! I KNEW IT!" spouted Miles furiously while his "friend" snickered along. "You-you're playing with me. But no. I'm 100% straight as a line".

"Yep, and that magazine under your cover proves it. Uh-uh," jested Gwen, cracking up in disbelief at Miles' prominence. Miles turned to unearth the magazine with the shirtless, chiseled man on the cover; and so his cherry cola cheeks made another reappearance.

"Ha ha ha, very funny," scowled Miles, picking up the magazine and wrinkling his nose at the sight of it, "but this isn't actually mine. It's Ganke's." He demonstrated it by throwing it at his roommate, which hit him in the head before it ebb and flowed to the floor. Ganke, who had been sporting his earbuds, carefully removed them to glare at Miles.

"Dude, why'd you hit me with your magazine?" he demanded, "I was just getting to the best part of 'Mo Bamba'".

"'Mo Bamba'? You listen to that trash?" argued Miles back, "'Sicko Mode's way better."

"Oh, so that is your magazine," Gwen reiterated, howling at Miles' inability to hide his sexuality.

"Yeah, and he hides a stash of them under-" explained Ganke, who was interrupted by an embarrassed Miles.

"What was that about listening to 'Mo Bamba'?" fumed Miles. Ganke promptly responded with a shrug and absorbed himself in the music. He couldn't have cared less about Miles' homosexuality, just as long as they remained friends.

"I find it hilarious that you're denying your sexuality despite it being so obvious," noted Gwen with a sly smile, "Come on now, there's nothing wrong with being gay. I'll accept you for who you are, and your friend Ganke will too. Are your parents total homophobes or what?"

"It's not that," reconsidered Miles, "my mom loves me either way, although it would take my dad some time to accept the fact. My dad was okay with my uncle's bisexuality, rest in peace, so he'll come down to it."

"So...?"

"I...I can't accept myself as gay," lamented Miles, "I was sure I was into girls. Could it be a side effect of puberty?"

"Well, at least you finally nailed down puberty," sarcastically assured Gwen.

"Seriously, though, all my life, I wanted a girlfriend. But now? I keep magazines with shirtless guys on the covers and find myself staring at other guys. And it all started with Eddie. Oh, Eddie..."

"Sorry, man, I feel for you. But this sounds like something you should discuss your parents at length. I tried being of some help, but you obviously can't come to terms with your sexuality. Maybe your parents' acceptance will help you be more comfortable with being gay."

"Shit, you might be right," muttered Miles Morales. "Well then, till I see you again, Gwen."

"Hope I never do," teased Spider-Gwen, now replaced by the blank dorm ceiling. Miles begin plotting his next move and, anxious but determined, started heading out to his parents' house.

"I'm heading out to see the fam, Ganke. Peace." Miles extended his right hand above him to form the peace sign. Ganke gave in return a peace sign of his own, not looking up from his computer once.

Miles took off towards his house, only stopping one time to examine the exact same Calvin Klein billboard advertisement with the shirtless male model and his perfect six-pack abs.

This time, he had no shame at ogling it.

"He sure is packing something," thought Miles out loud to himself.

Of course, his heart was reserved for only one person.

Just one.


	3. In An Earth of A Romance's Worth

**Chapter 3: In An Earth of a Romance's Worth**

 **Featured character(s): Rio Morales, Aunt May (mentioned), Jefferson Davis, and Edward (mentioned)**

" _Ay mijo, ¿qué te trae por aquí_?" was the first thing that Miles' gorgeous Puerto-Rican mother, Rio Morales, asked when she saw her son in front of the house, at the stoop.

" _Hola, mami_ ," said Miles, disoriented and out of focus. Part of this was because he was mentally rehearsing how he would come out to his parents. He felt more unbalanced by the prospects of their reactions. Would they or would they not accept him for his sexual orientation? If yes, would that give him the right to discuss his male romantic interest with his parents without any repercussions? Or would he have to become a runaway and take refuge in Aunt May's small, decent house?

It did work for Kevin Abstract...

" _Quiero hablarte sobre algo_."

"Come in, come in," she insisted, watching her son with worry as clear as glass. She sensed that it was something important he wanted to converse over. As she closed the front door, her husband Jefferson walked out of the bathroom, Ebony Man magazine in hand. His concern was visible when he got a surprise (Miles) sitting in the kitchen table, looking down and studying his hands.

Rio and Jefferson traded anxious glances at each other. What issue did their son want to speak of this time around?

"Son, is there something that's bothering you?" interrogated Jefferson gravely. "You can come to us anytime with your concerns".

"Yeah..." squeaked out Miles. He was borderline sobbing, fearing what would slip out of his mouth and what his mind would regret.

"So?" Interrogated Jefferson once more, this time with stern, "Speak up, son."

"I'm..." tears stained his cheeks as he tried to compose himself, "I'm...I'm...I'm gay, okay? I'm attracted to guys and I look at guys' bodies every time and I even have magazines with shirtless guys and I'm still confused as to why I like guys just don't be disappointed at me...please."

The first reaction Miles got from his parents upon his coming out confession was from his mother, who went over to her only son and smothered him in kisses.

" _Siempre te amare, Miles, ames a quien ames_."

"Thanks Mom," sniffed Miles, "love you too."

Jefferson Davis, on the other hand, did not react immediately. He just looked right past Miles, pondering, as if considering the implications of fathering a homosexual son.

"I can't say I'm too fond of your...lifestyle, Miles," he said matter-of-factly. "And I'm not going to lie myself by saying that I wanted a gay son."

In spite of this he sprouted a weak smile and opened up his arms for an embrace. Miles took the opportunity to give him a tight hug.

"But I'll try to understand you, Miles, I mean it. I'd do anything to see my son smile." He ended his vow with a pat on the back, and Miles reminisced for a moment that he had paid off a huge debt.

"Thanks, you guys," whimpered Miles, which reminded him to wipe the drops from his face. He was set on staying in his room when his dad's booming yell sent him braking his feet:

"Miles, where you think you going?"

"Ummm...I was gonna go to my room."

"What fo'? To check out those beefy dudes in the mags?"

"Daaaad..."

"Kidding! Me and your mom were going to eat dinner. Join us."

"'Aight, I'll be there. Just gotta look at something first."

"Hurry. Your mom's a'most done with her legendary _asopao_."

Arriving at his destination, Miles turned his twin bed over its head looking for some particular objects. He relished in his own relief when he dug them up from his pillow covers: the X-rated magazines which his parents had thankfully not confiscated. "I'll be there," he bluffed, because really he was busy stuffing the magazines down.

They would come into use during his "me time".

When Miles came back into the kitchen, he sat on the table and had a wonderful dinner accompanied by his parents' chatter about his education in a new school and the students he'd befriended, along with any questions he had regarding his sexuality. He rejected any notions of questioning his sexuality, though. For now, he felt at peace and wanted to focus on his newfound role as Spider-Man.

And yet, there was one matter left untied.

His feelings for Edward.

You see, he had realized that, all along, he had fallen for Edward. Every visit had motivated him to continue eradicating crime as Spider-Man when nothing else could. And frankly, he had found him quite handsome. Because he had fully found himself, Miles yearned to tell Edward his love for him, and oh how he treasured his amiability, his hospitality, his strange furling smile that infected him to laugh as well, his curly marshmallow hair...

Great, he comprehended, here I am on top of a building, fawning over my dream boy, when I could be saving the common men from peril.

Against his better judgement he called it a day from his vigilante duties, but remained on the building as he performed a back-flip of great heights. When the air hit his face and the city became apparent to him, he confirmed it to himself.

He was going to Edward's universe and come clean.


	4. This World of A Heart Uncurled

**Chapter 4: This World Of A Heart Uncurled**

 **Featured character(s): Edward (mentioned and appearance), Peter B. Parker/Spider-Man (mentioned), Mary Jane Watson (mentioned), Ganke Lee, Stacy Gwen/Spider-Gwen, Jefferson Davis (mentioned), and Rio Morales (mentioned)**

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 **A/N:** This is a double-length finale to the "Spider-Verse: A Universe of Lovers" fanfic. That means it is longer than previous chapters, but is essential to properly conclude the conflict in this fanfic.

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"God, could you be more quieter?"

Miles whispered to the door, not anticipating an answer back. He quietly crept in the room, Spider-Man costume in hand and a longing for Edward's love in his heart. After he slid the spandex suit in a safe place he tucked himself to sleep and slept profoundly. His sleep soundtrack consisting mostly of Frank Ocean songs followed him into his dreams as images slid by...

...the well-defined shirtless male models from the pages of his magazines...

...Gwen Stacy with a plastered smile on her face, from a 1st person POV...

...the artist himself, Frank Ocean, who Miles held a celebrity crush on for a very long time, but never quite came to terms with it until now...

...and, most importantly...

...Edward.

A sequence played in his mind, that which payed homage to the original Tobey Maguire Spider-Man film, which was a personal favorite of Miles'. Except that instead of Peter Parker, it was Miles himself. Edward was on the chase by a group of hoodlums and fended them off for a good while until his strength ran out and turned him vulnerable to assault. Edward was hopeless until Miles' Spider-Man showed up and fist fought the hood rats. When it didn't impact them much, Miles resorted to his karate moves, which knocked them out cold. He then left the scene, which confused Edward. He went looking down an alley for him, but almost gave up when there he was, suspended from a fire escape.

"Hey shawty," he crooned.

"Oh...hey," Edward greeted back, having remembered how to act human, "you saved me back there. I just wanted to thank you personally. Love the costume, it's pretty neat."

"Love, you say?" questioned Miles, intrigued by the word choice utilized. "Funny you mention that word."

"Yeah, maybe it's because I...really do love you."

"And I do, too," mused Miles. "Wanna give me a kiss goodbye?"

"I'd be stupid not to." Edward then carefully folded the lower part of Miles' Spider-Man mask and planted a smooch on his face. But this would not do for Miles. He craved those sweet, full lips. So he forcefully grabbed Edward by the head and made out with him. Surprised, Edward got fully involved in the make-out session, mewling from Miles' aggression.

"You enjoy this, don't you?" said Miles smugly. Edward just nodded and kept on loving him, loving him ("Wake up, Miles"), loving him, softly and lovingly loving him ("Miles...Miles...Miles..."); he could enjoy this for years to come ("For fuck's sake, Miles..."); Mary Jane's kiss could never compare to Edward's ("WAKE UP MILES!")...

"Wha-uh...~whaat?" Miles rasped. He quickly found the source of the yelling to be Ganke, who was on the verge of slapping him awake.

"Dude, it almost took me a slap in the face to wake you up," retorted Ganke as he selected a song from his Spotify playlist, which was "Drip Too Hard" by Lil Baby and Gunna.

"Why'd you wake me up?" Miles was annoyed that his best friend had woken him early on a Saturday when another voice in the room scared him witless.

"'Sup, Miles." The voice was provided by a portal just above him, and he quickly matched it with Spider Gwen's. Sure enough, there she was, patiently waiting for him. Her giddy smile countered with her usual sardonic and sarcastic personality, and Miles was sure she had something important to inform him on. He leaned back against the top bed bunk and remarked, "What's that smile hidin'?"

"I see you brought more magazines with you," she witted, pointing of the bulges on his red-and-green jacket. Miles just grimaced and probed her with "So what? I can't accept and/or love myself for who I am?"

"Woah, since when have you been okay with being gay?"

"Since I came out to my parents, which was last night."

"Damn. I know you're brave and all, but not when it came to personal shit like that."

"Well, I did, and they were cool with it. Although my dad wasn't in love with the idea at first, he said he's understand. So there's that."

"I'm proud of you Miles. I usually don't say stuff like that, but believe me, I am. Especially since you're...well..."

"Come on," encouraged Miles, "you can say the word. It's not a slur."

"Since you're black."

"Half African-American and half Puerto-Rican, but yeah, my skin's black."

"Yeah."

Miles still missed Edward, and hungered for his warm arms wrapping around him, ensuring him of their love. Then everything would come full circle for him. That's when he struck up an idea.

"Gwen?"

"Yes, Miley?"

"Never call me that again."

"Duly noted, Miles."

"No, but really, I want you do me a favor."

"What type of favor?"

"Could you open me a portal to just simply Earth."

"The OG Earth?"

"That would be the one."

"Stay there. I'll get to work on it."

Miles laid still on his bed, listening to his own Spotify audio playlist consisting mostly on hip-hop music, although once in a while some R&B and EDM hits were reserved a spot on his playlist. But Miles didn't mind branching out to other music genres, and he even gave pop and rock a chance. As he listened, he hypothesized exactly what he would admit to Edward.

"I actually loved you, but never realized it 'till now." Nope, he needed to further explain how he _came_ to accept his sexuality.

"After I came out to my parents, I've come to find out I'm actually gay and that I...love you." That was the closest one he came up with that was acceptable.

"I love you." Hell naw. That was just too straightforward. No reasoning, no build up. They were three words that became meaningless once you read between the lines. His keen instincts assisted him in his decision to ultimately choose the second option. Please let me face my lover to tell him that yes, yes I loved you back but no, no I couldn't tell you that I did because I was bedazzled by the concept of homosexuality and was afraid of being a 'faggot', but now it don't matter to me because yes I've fallen for you and yes, that was a Michael Jackson reference, and yes-

"Hellooo, Ground Control to Major Miles..."

"Aye aye, Cap'n Gwen!"

"Leave it to you to ruin that reference."

"To hell with the references, what's it you 'ere gonna tell me?"

"I've set up the portal to Earth. You can only stay in there for a maximum of 30 minutes. No more than that. Enter through and get your business done. Got it?"

"Yes, miss." Miles poked fun at Gwen for her commands, much to her dismay.

"Just go in already. God."

"See ya, wouldn't wanna be ya," he uttered one more time before leaving Earth-1610, not bothering to witness Gwen's reaction to his last comment. He knew, deep inside, that she wished safety upon. Maybe death as well, but more than likely not it was his safety.

* * *

Miles Morales hadn't even taken a more closer look at Edward's apartment when he fell in love all over again. The rooms contained a lot of history in them, and he knew one of them by heart: Edward's room, where he had refused Edward's feelings and verbally abused him for his sexuality. That room had history all right, but Miles did not want to replay the events of that day in his mind. He regretted every letter stringed together to form that insult, and hoped Edward still swooned for him so that he would forgive him more efficiently.

Miles sized up the apartment. The atmosphere was thick and lingering, as if absent of any human presence, and the lighting was dimming. The juxtaposition of traffic noises from below were alive and vibrant, as Miles expected from New York City. They served as background noise while Miles panicked. Where was Edward? Did he go out with the fam? If so, Miles would have to tell Edward on another occasion. Disappointed, Miles turned around...

...only to encounter Edward, fresh out of the shower.

"Edward!" Miles said, pleased to find out his assumptions weren't wrong. His man was here, brightening the room with his handsome appearance. "Man, I'm so glad you're here, I just wanna-"

"The fuck are you doing here?" scorned Edward, "Did you come here to call me a 'faggot' one last time, or are you going to get creative and hit me with a 'queer' or 'fairy'?"

"It's nothing of the sort," promised Miles with desperation, "Please listen to me, Eddie, I-I'm head over heels for you."

Eddie stared intently at him, unsure of how to respond. How did Miles have the guts to finally confess he had loved him by the time Edward himself had lost interest in the other boy? It seemed selfish of Miles to do so after having bombarded him with homophobic speech. And Edward was not here for it.

"Fuck you," gritted Edward between his teeth, "fuck you for calling me a faggot and leaving me heartbroken, fuck you for making me fall out of love, fuck you for conveniently deciding to like me even after you coldly rejected me, fuck you for coming back even though it'd hurt me, and fuck you for all. Of. It." He ended his rant with tears streaming down his cheeks and muted sobbing, after which he ran into his room, where Miles could hear his love wailing to himself.

I will not give him up, he thought determinedly. I'll go after him.

Miles quietly filed himself into Edward's room, which had not been updated since his last visit. One noticeable change, however, was the Spider-Verse poster, which had been rolled up and shoved into the closet. This tore Miles from the inside, but he concentrated on getting straight to the point. He directed himself to Edward, who was laying on his side in his twin-sized mattress. Despite his cries having died down, the teardrops stayed there for him, keeping him company in his emotional turmoil. As far as Edward was concerned, they were better company than Miles.

Miles sat on the edge of the bed, his back facing Edward. He cautiously chose what would come out of his mouth while his eyes targeted Edward's closet, its white sliding door standing in front of him. Finally, he spoke up.

"Look, I know that I said some horrible things to you regarding your sexuality, but that was because I didn't understand myself very well. After I left this dimension, I came to realize that I was actually gay and I just hid it from myself because I didn't think anyone would accept me for who I was. Of course, I was wrong, as I'm usually. My family and friends eventually found out, though, and accepted that part of my identity. I'm now openly gay and really comfortable with it."

"Good for you," rudely responded Edward, his voice hoarse from blubbering, "you done with your self loving?"

"I didn't come here and not think of you, Edward. In fact, I've been thinking about you ever since I left this alternate universe. You've crawled into my every thought and made me fall hard for you. You're the reason I still stop crime as Spider-Man. You're the reason I figured myself and my true identity. You're the air I breathe to stay alive. You make me feel alive. You've unknowingly helped me, and I hadn't even fully realized it till now. That's why I want to declare to you this..."

At this Miles laid down next to Edward and forcefully turned him over so that their faces stared back at each other. Reluctantly, Edward twisted himself and stared at Miles' ecstatic, luminous chocolate eyes. It hit him that, contrary to what he had believed, he still felt something for Miles Gonzalo Morales, something so burrowed and cavernous that he hadn't dug it up until this very opportune time. For the first time since their last time, he grinned at Miles, who traded him a smile in return.

"...I declare my love to you, Edward. It's true. I'm so enamoured with you, this isn't even a crush like the one I had for Gwen's. This is true love blossoming within me. Now what about you? Do you accept my love?"

Edward did not waste more time pondering the proposition. His love for Miles was just too much.

"Yes, Miles, I too love you back. You revived the feelings I had tried to forgo ever since that...unfortunate incident from your previous visit. But here I am, in love with you, and I won't waste what I feel for you anymore, nor will I wait. I love you, Miles Gonzalo Morales. I do."

Miles made the first move. He positioned his bending arms on top of Edward's shoulders, and thumbed the other boy's ears delicately. Then he planted a sloppy and uncoordinated smooch on Edward's lips, who tried to keep up with Miles' kisses as he held Miles by the hips. Their tongues found it difficult to envelope each other, and their saliva was exchanged very poorly. But there was true passion, and the boys felt it all around.

Their session lasted upwards of 15 minutes straight. By the time they parted lips, the boys were sweating and Miles had taken off his shirt. Miles then tracked the time on his phone, which told him he didn't have much time left on this dimension.

"Aw shit, I gotta leave," cursed Miles in frustration.

"Already?" Edward inflected with sadness.

"Yeah, don't have much time left. If I stay here longer than 30 minutes, I'll be stuck here permanently. And I don't want that."

"In that case, I'll see you around?"

"Yeah, Gwen can keep the portal connecting our worlds open, I just can't crash here any longer than a half-hour. I still want to be with my family and friends, you know."

"I understand. But at least give me a kiss goodbye."

"Here you go." Miles gifted him an open smile before pecking him on the lips. He was about to tread over to the portal, but first he had to commend Edward on a minor issue.

"While I'm gone, you should hang up that poster back again," he advised, "so I can be here for you even when I'm physically not."

"I'll kept that in mind, chocolate crumb."

"Why, thank you, Eddiekins."

Miles left across the portal to his dimension, after which the portal sealed itself, disappearing until the room reinstated back to normalcy. Eddie's heart fluttered remembering his embrace with Miles. He would treasure the memory even into his old, withering age. After he finished replaying the day's events to himself, he trudged himself out of bed and retrieved the Spider-Verse poster from the trash can. He unrolled it and kissed the image of Miles Morales.

"You'll be just as good as the real deal," Edward reassured himself, then went to work on putting up the poster in his ceiling, all the while admiring Miles, as if he was still just a fictional crush of his and not his actual boyfriend.


	5. Extra! Extra! Extra!

**Title: Spider-Verse: A Universe of Lovers**

 **Chapters**

 **Chapter 1: A Universe of Lovers**

 **Chapter 2: The Dimensions of Self Acceptance**

 **Chapter 3: An Earth of A Romance's Worth**

 **Chapter 4: In A World of A Heart Uncurled**

 **Summary:** **Miles Morales unwittingly travels to an apartment in an alternate version of NYC while trying to reconnect with Gwen Stacy, and quickly befriends one of its residents, a kid the same age as him named Edward who's a big fan and interested in him. Despite coldly rejecting his romantic propositions at first, Miles figures out his sexuality through the support of family and friends, as well as his true feelings for Edward.**

 **Things that will help during reading:**

 **Voice cast**

Shameik Moore as **Miles Morales/Spider-Man**

Troye Sivan as **Edward "Eddie** "

Hailee Steinfeld as **Stacy Gwen/Spider-Woman**

Ken Jeong as **Ganke Lee**

Luna Lauren Velez as **Rio Morales**

Brian Tyree Henry as **Jefferson Davis**

 **Soundtrack**

*Silk City - "Electricity" ft. Dua Lipa

*Frank Ocean - "Thinkin Bout You"

*Clean Bandit - "Symphony" ft. Zara Larsson

*Troye Sivan - "My My My!"

*The Bee Gees - "How Deep Is Your Love"

*John Legend - "All Of Me"

*Tyler the Creator - "See You Again"

*Miguel - "Sure Thing"


End file.
